Power and Authority

The words “power” and “authority” have many shades of meaning, and their relationship to each other can be subtle or complex. Nonetheless, it’s worthwhile to examine some of their basic and important implications in the moral sphere.

We all have certain powers. We have the power to breathe, walk, talk and so on. Such powers are not regarded as relevant to morality. We don’t need authorization in order to exercise them. We have other powers, however, that do require authorization. These moral powers come into clear focus when we involve ourselves in the lives of other people. We have, for example, the power to steal from others, though we do not have the authority to do so. In the moral sphere, power and authority should harmonize.

A man and a woman, for example, have the power to engage in a sexual act. What authorizes the use of this power, however, is complex — including marriage, mutual consent, openness to procreation and the willingness to accept all the responsibilities that go with fatherhood and motherhood. The unauthorized use of sex is one of the most common acts of immorality.

Power without authority is one way of identifying an issue that has received a great deal of attention of late, namely bullying. The bully does not have the authority to exercise his power, either physical or mental, over others. Looking at bullying in this light should make us realize there are many forms of bullying over and above what the media reports. For example, a question should be raised — although it almost never is — about whether an abortionist is authorized to use his power to take the life of an unborn child. A correlative question is whether a medical doctor is ever authorized to exercise his power to kill a patient. (“Physician-assisted suicide” is really an act of killing on the part of the physician.)

It isn’t likely, however, that there will be much progress in ending widely recognized forms of bullying, such as campus or Internet bullying, without confronting the basic flaw of bullying as such — namely, the unauthorized use of power over others. Bullying is inseparable from many other immoral acts that have the same profile. A collective effort should be made to reduce and potentially eliminate all forms of bullying. We cannot afford, however, to be myopic when it comes to dealing with the unauthorized use of power, which surely can include governmental acts of bullying citizens.

Power, with its moral implications, needs to be married to legitimate authority. A medical doctor earns his authority to practice his art through long years of apprenticeship. His license to practice medicine is given to him in recognition of his properly acquired authority. In this case, as well as in many other arts and sciences, the wedding of power with legitimate authority is understood as capacitating a person to exercise power responsibly.

Jesus Christ offers an interesting and effective stance in this matter, because he represents authority without power. He has power available to him, but in the moral domain, he prefers to renounce his power so his authority becomes more authentic and even more appealing. He doesn’t want to force anyone to be moral, an approach that would be, in principle, vain anyhow. By renouncing power, he places himself in a position where he cannot be accused of using excessive power, that is, of being authoritarian. In this way, he respects our freedom and allows us to choose what is good on our own. He shines the light and invites us to follow it. 

Mahatma Gandhi and Rev. Martin Luther King are well-known examples of moral authority figures who renounced the use power. This is the way of inspiring others to follow what is morally good: by appealing to freedom, rather than resorting to coercion.

The example of authority without power can be beneficial in the effort to reduce bullying. If we can see the beauty of morally good action and choose it on our own accord, we will be less likely to use power without authority. The paradox, then, is this: For the Christian especially, authority without power can inspire us to use our own power with authority.

Donald DeMarco

is a senior fellow of Human Life International.

Some of his recent writings may be found at

Human Life International’s Truth and Charity Forum.